Band Practice
by Hikarin-Love
Summary: Every Friday night they'd taken to jamming together in his Ice Castle. Marceline didn't mind the flight over, and it gave her a good reason to get out of her house. What she did mind, however, was Ice King's habit of breaking pre-established rules.


**A/N: **I've been off the fanfiction radar! I've been writing like crazy for my multi chapter fic and everything (to FINALLY get to update it), but I really missed posting so: One-shots to the rescue! I had a Marceline and Ice King feels attack, so...yeah! Sorry if it's not good, this is the first time I've ever written for Adventure Time!

* * *

Every Friday night they'd taken to jamming together in his Ice Castle. Marceline didn't mind the flight over, and it gave her a good reason to get out of her house.

What she did mind, however, was Ice King's habit of breaking pre-established rules.

"Hey, Ice King."

Marceline floated through his window, axe-bass in hand and ready to drop some tunes. Since their last encounter, she's been open to just hanging out and playing with him. He really wasn't that bad with the drums.

And maybe this is what she needed. Just some time with him. Maybe the wounds would start to heal that way…

"Hey, Marceline," Ice King gestured toward his drum set, eyebrows jumping up and down at her, "Whaddaya think of my little set-up over hear? Really cool, huh? Nice and bass-y. _Hmm, hmm_?"

Marceline half smiled, shaking her head at the old coot.

"It's fine, Ice King, just move over a bit so I can do my thing."

As she said this, Marceline floated towards him. His general place was pretty huge so there would be no problem with rocking it out in due time, she just wanted to make sure that he wouldn't start invading her personal bubble again.

"Okay, let's get started!" Ice King grabbed his drum sticks, but before anything else he began to rummage through some papers he had laying around the floor, "I got these great song ideas-especially one I think Princess Bubblegum might-"

"No."

The Ice King stopped mid sentence and looked blankly at her. Marceline, for her part, glared at him fiercely. She was gripping the neck of her axe-bass like she was getting ready to hit him. And she was.

"Er-what?"

"You know the rules," Marceline said sternly, so much her face began to flush with anger, she floated closer to him just to make her point, "No songs for princess. Not for Bonnibel. Not for anybody. You _**know**_ that, Ice King."

"Eh, hehe…" Ice King began to sweat, Marceline's fangs started showing and it was giving him all the wrong vibes. Scary, murder-y vibes.

He nodded.

Pacified, Marceline smiled and started tuning her bass.

"Quak!"

"Gunther!" Ice King frowned at the penguin, "I told you never to interrupt-Oh. You got the snacks."

Just as he had said, Gunther had a silver tray full of tarts balancing on his head.

"Quak." he said again.

"Well, I'm hungry-calling a lunch break!"

Ice King left no room for a diplomatic vote and went straight for the tray trotting penguin. Sighing, Marceline put done her bass and did the same. They were pretty good actually, they had a lot of raspberry red cream inside of them, so Marceline could enjoy them. She figure that had been Gunther's personal touch on them, Ice King was bright enough to be that smooth.

"Thanks, Gunther," she said, patting the little guy on the head.

"Don't coddle him, he'll start to walk all over you," Ice King frowned at him again, taking the tray and hogging it all to himself, "Shoo-shoo! Getoutta here ya little kiss up, I know you're tricks!"

Gunther looked depressed. He walked away.

Seriously, Marceline could not get some of the things Ice King did.

Shrugging, she continued to suck the red out of the tarts. Delicious. Meanwhile Ice King was gorging himself on the rest of them. Marceline's wasn't upset by it. At least he was putting on some weight, compared to how skinny he had been before, it was a good thing that he was eating.

"Oh, hey, now that your munching on some munchies," Ice King reached for the floor again, "Maybe you wouldn't mind hearing a few ideas I have!"

"Ice King, I said no princess songs…" she said in a warning tone.

"No, no! It's legit, none-princess song material! Swearsies!" he smiled at her.

Marceline had the right to be initially weary, but seeing that he didn't look particularly deceiving, she nodded to him.

"GREAT!" Ice King was practically elated, "Heh…this is actually just a little something I made up for a DATE with Bubblegum and-"

"_**UGH**_!"

Marceline throw down her tart and glared at him. Hard.

He even had the nerve to be confused.

"I knew you'd pull something like this!" she hissed, clenching her fists, "It's just like you, you can't let it go can you?!"

"w-Wha? You said no songs! This is a strategy guide! A step-by-step plan!"

"WHY I OUGHTA-!" by the time she grabbed her axe-bass and swung it over her head, she was looking at his mortal terror and began to deflate in anger.

She let her arms down, hearing her axe _clink_ at the ice floor. She frowned.

"Um…You okay there Marceline?"

No-she-was-not-okay. Why is it he always has to ruin it with his creepy-stalker-princess-bit? Why can't it just be her, him, and a couple of instruments? Jeez, it's like he was hard-wired to annoy her with 'Bubblegum this, Bubblegum that'. She usually wouldn't mind, but it was hard when he always did the same thing.

She sighed, "Whatever. I'm leaving."

"Hey, wait a minute-!"

Marceline was already out the door.

000

The next Friday she was in a better mood.

She figured it was just another part of his Crazy Ice Crown thing. Where he was so obsessive toward princesses. And kidnapping. It wasn't his fault anymore than not remembering her was. He couldn't help being dreadfully annoying sometimes.

Glob, she hated that crown.

"Hey, Ice King, Gunther, I'm back!" Marceline called out as she came through the window.

Empty.

Completely empty.

Marceline looked around the ice cavern. No one was in sight.

"Hey, guys!" she tried louder, "GUYS?!"

_Hmph._

_Where is everyone?_

She walked around a bit, hoping that they're come running any minute. Most of the other penguins where outside playing cat-hockey, and it didn't look like Ice King was in his room. His drums were just laying around, too.

"You're not mad about last week, are you?" she called out to the wind, "Hey, I'm sorry! Just come out and we can jam about whatever you want, even princess!"

Nothing.

She frowned.

And quite frankly she was begging to get a little worried. Could he really be angry at her? Or was he in trouble?

Nah, Finn and Jake would never rough him up to bad. Maybe all she had to do was wait around for him to come home, grumbling about his latest failure. That would be fun to sing about.

Humming a tune to herself, Marceline grabbed her axe-bass again and played around with it for a while. Yep, all she had to do was wait and Ice King would come flying in and they'd be ready to play.

000

She's been waiting for _three hours_.

The initial optimism gone, Marceline was seriously starting to worry about him. Just where the heck was he?

"Quack."

"Gunther?" Marceline turned around, lo and behold, there the little guy was, all wide eyed and everything, "Hey where cutie," she picked him up, "Do _you_ know where Ice King is?"

"Quack."

000

"Now, Princess, you know struggling will only give you rope burn," Ice King told Princess Bubblegum, petting her sweet head gently, "You'll ruin yout nice complexion that way."

"Ice King, you hack!" Bubblegum protested harshly, "Just wait until Finn and Jake find get here! You gotta stop doing this you crazy!"

"I'm doing this for you, Baby!"

"Ugh!"

"ICE KING!"

To the surprise of both the Ice King and Bubblegum, Marceline had floated through the castle tower's window. Looking mad.

Looking _furious_, in fact.

"Marceline?" Bubblegum stated in disbelief. Even tied up in her bedroom, this had to the strangest development so far.

But Mraceline wasn't staring at Bubblegum. Oh, no. she was staring at the JERK that was standing there like a stupid.

"Ice King!"

"Wut?"

"You blew me off for _**this**_?!"

Marceline was fuming. She had been waiting for three freakin hours at his castle, meanwhile he had been here, acting out some new plot to get Bubblegum.

_SERIOUSLY_?!

"Blew you off?-Oh! You mean band practice!"

"Band practice?" Bubblegum asked dubiously.

"Yep, ya see your hot rod over here's in a band, Sweetie!" and then Ice King turned toward Marceline again, "Well, Marcy, I was with my girl here and-"

"_**UGH**_!"

Marceline swung her axe at him. Ice King frantically moved out of the way. The rope around Bubblegum broke apart.

"Hey!" Ice King shouted indignantly, "I worked hard on that!"

"Shut up!"

There was silence in the room. Marceline bawled her hands into fists. Clenched them. Why did it have to be hard? Couldn't she get one thing? Just one thing with the person that had been her guardian? Oh, but no! That stupid crown had to make him bat-crazy for princess! Stupid, stupid, crown.

Stupid _Simon_!

She's not gonna cry, darn it! Not in front of Bonnibel, not in front of anyone!

Glob. Freaking. **Darn it!**

"You know what? Whatever! Fine! Just fine! I hate you, you stupid old jerk!"

And she flew away.

000

"Stupid…stupid…"

No, she wasn't crying in the privacy of her cave. She's sweating through her undead eyeballs.

Maybe she was overreacting. It's not his fault. It's the crown.

But it still _hurts_.

She's acting like a spoiled little girl. She wants him all to herself. Is it wrong? He was taken away from her at the age where children start to cling to the ones who treated them best. Simon had been the only person there for her in those tough times. In those destructive times. Things were bad enough with him forgetting. She jus wanted to at least hang out…

"Whatever," she buried her face into her knees.

"Um…Marceline?"

Ice King.

Marceline looked up. There he was. Twiddling his thumbs.

"Um…Marcy…I…I'm really sorry I upset you…I don't…know why, but I'm really sorry…I hope you forgive me."

She glares at him. But she can't be mad at him. Her shoulders slump and she looks away.

"Just…oh, never mind," she sighs.

"No, no, keep goin!" she can hear Ice King's beard flapping as he flies over to her, "I wanna make it up, honest! Lay it on me, I'll do anything!"

She should probably say no. tell him to get lost or something. But she can't.

"Can you just…sit here for a while?" she patted the rock next to her, "Don't say or do anything, just sit."

"Uh, okay," Ice King does so without questioning, and she's glad for that.

When he sits she lays her head on his shoulder. For a while they say nothing and all is silent. She's transported back in time. Back when Marceline was a little girl and she would put her head next to Simon's arm and sleep while the night faded away and danger left them alone. He always let her sleep close to him. It made her feel safe. He protected her. She felt like the most important person in the world.

"Hey," Ice King speaks and the spell is broken. She's back in her cave one-thousand years later, "Is there still time to jam or are you still wazzed off at me?"

She smiles. It's an honest to goodness smile.

"Yeah, Ice King, we can jam."

That Friday they played at her house. Not about princess. Or angst-y stuff. Just random, good time stuff.

And Marceline was genuinely happy.


End file.
